Selected quad for the lemma: city_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	observe_v	sin_n	watchfulness_n	64	3	16.5316	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A23760	The practice of Christian graces, or, The whole duty of man laid down in a plaine and familiar way for the use of all, but especially the meanest reader : divided into XVII chapters, one whereof being read every Lords Day, the whole may be read over thrice in the year : with Private devotions for several occasions...; Whole duty of man	Allestree, Richard, 1619-1681.; Fell, John, 1625-1686.	1658 (1658)	Wing A1158; ESTC R17322	270,574	508

upon wealth he is that covetous person of whom the Apostle hath pronounced that he shall not enter into the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 6. 10. Nor doth he onely offend against his Soul but against his body too For he often denies that those necessary refreshments it wants and for which his wealth as far as it concerns himself was given him This is so constantly the custome of rich Misers that I need not prove it to you 7. In the third place Covetousness is contrary to the duty we owe to our neighbours And that in both the parts of it Justice and Charity he that loves money immoderately will not care whom he cheats and defrauds so he may bring in gain to himself and from hence spring those many tricks of deceit and cousenage so common in the world As for Charity that is never to be hoped for from a covetous man who dreads the lessening of his own heaps more then the starving of his poor Brother You see how great a sin this is that containes under it so many others so that we may well say of it as the Apostle doth 1 Tim. 6. 10. The love of money is the root of all evil And it is not much less uneasy then wicked for between the care of getting and the fear of loosing the covetous man enjoyes no quiet hour Therefore every man is deeply concerned as the tenders his happiness either in this world or the next to guard himself against this sin which he can no way do but by possessing his heart with this vertue of contentedness 8. In the fourth place it is contrary to envy for he that is content with his own condition hath no temptation to envy anothers How unchristian a sin this of envy is shall hereafter be shewed At the present I need say no more but that it is also a very uneasy one it frets and knawes the very heart of him that harbours it But the worse this sin is the more excellent still is this grace of contentedness which frees us from it I suppose I have said enough to make you think this a very lovely and desirable Virtue And sure it were not impossible to be gained by any that would but observe these few directions 9. First To consider that whatever our estate and condition in any respect be it is that which is allotted us by God and therefore is certainly the best for us he being much better able to judge for us then we for our selves and therefore to be displeased at it is in effect to say we are wiser then he Secondly Consider thorowly the vanity of all worldly things how very little there is in them whi●e we have them and how uncertain we are to keep them but above all in how little stead they will stand us at the day of death or judgement and then thou canst not think any of them much worth the desiring and so wilt not be discontented for want of them Thirdly Suffer not thy fancy to run on things thou hast not many have put themselves out of love with what they have onely by thinking what they want He that sees his neighbour possess somewhat which himself hath not is apt to think how happy he should be if he were in that mans condition and in the mean time never thinks of enjoying his own which yet perhaps in many respects may be much happier then that of his neighbours which he so much admires For we look but upon the outside of other mens conditions and many a man that is envied by his neighbours as a wonderful happy person hath yet some secret trouble which makes him think much otherwise of himself Therefore never compare thy condition in any thing with those thou countest more prosperous then thy self but rather do it with those thou knowest more unhappy and then thou wilt find cause to rejoice in thine own portion Fourthly Consider how far thou art from deserving any good thing from God and then thou canst not but with Jacob Gen. 32. 10. confess that thou art not worthy of the least of those mercies thou enjoyest and in stead of murmuring that they are no more wilt see reason to admire and praise the bounty of God that they are so many Fifthly Be often thinking of the joyes laid up for thee in Heaven look upon that as thy home on this world only as an Inne where thou art fain to take up in thy passage and then as a traveller expects not the same conveniences at an Inne that he hath at home so thou hast reason to be content with whatever entertainment thou findst here knowing thou art upon thy journey to a place of infinite happiness which will make an abundant amends for al the uneasiness and hardship thou canst suffer in the way Lastly Pray to God from whom all good things do come that he will to all his other blessings add this of a contented mind without which thou canst have no taste or relish of any other 10. A fifth duty is diligence This is made up of two parts watchfulness and industry and both these we owe to our Souls 11. First Watchfulness in observing all the dangers that threaten them Now since nothing can endanger our Souls but sin this watchfulness is principally to be imployed against that And as in a besieged City where there is any weak part there it is necessary to keep the strongest guard so it is here wherever thou findest thy inclinations such as are most likely to betray thee to sin there it concerns thee to be especially watchful Observe therefore carefully to what sins either thy natural temper thy company or thy course of life do particularly incline thee and watch thy self very narrowly in those Yet do not so lay out all thy care on those as to leave thy self open to any other for that may give Satan as much advantage on the other side but let thy watch be general against all sin though in a special manner against those which are like oftnest to assault thee 12. The second part of diligence is industry or labour and this also we owe to our Souls for without it they will as little prosper as that vineyard of the sluggard which Solomon describes Prov. 24. 30. For there is a husbandry of the Soul as well as of the estate and the end of the one as of the other is the creasing and improving of its riches Now the riches of the Soul are either natural or Divine By the natural I mean its faculties of reason wit memory and the like by the Divine I mean the graces of God which are not the Souls natural portion but are given immediatly by God and both these we are to take care to improve they being both talents intrusted to us for that purpose 13. The way of improving the natural is by imploying them so as may bring in most honour to God we must not let